Shattered Destiny
by Astoria00
Summary: What-ifAU:"Sometimes our choices are more impactful than we think" When young Cinder decides to listen to her heart instead of her fear, she couldn't have imagined just how many fates she affected in the process. Now she has to manage her school life while trying to stop her sisters from driving her crazy, not realizing that something far more sinister is hiding in plain sight.
1. Chapter 1

_The house was burning. _

_Bright, angry, flames devoured anything in their way, tinting the walls of the mansion in an orange, reddish hue. The smoke filled air burned her lungs with every painful breath she took, as she sprinted through the corridor towards the staircase. The fire had already engulfed most of it. Stumbling down she could still hear the desperate cries of her mother and sister._

"_Cinderella!"_

_Run!_

_She needed to run, to escape._

"_Come back!"_

_The front door was behind a wall of hot flames, blocking her way out._

_She was trapped._

"_Help us!"_

_No! She refused to die here._

_With as much energy as her little body could still muster she threw herself against the burning door, only to find it locked._

'_Hot!'_

_A piercing pain shot right through her shoulder, as the wood before her began to splinter at the sudden impact. The hem of her dress caught fire, as she stemmed with all her might against the front door, but aside from emitting a loud creaking noise it didn't seem to budge._

'_No!'_

_She had to get out of here._

_Placing her small hands desperately on the wooden surface, she pushed it again._

_Her heart was racing madly inside her chest, as the sheer hopelessness of the situation sunk in._

_She couldn't give up now! _

_She was so close…_

…_so close…_

_Something was building inside her. A heavy aching, something raw and untamed, pressing right underneath her skin…_

_Behind her eyes…_

_The flames seemed to cool down, still licking at every inflammable fabric on her body they could find, but she couldn't feel them anymore._

_The heat was simply…gone._

_The pressure in her eyes worsened…_

_Her ears began to ring…_

"_CINDERELLA!"_

_The world around her exploded with a terrifying scream, as she felt a hot sensation running through her amber eyes, bursting the door out of its angle and she was finally free._

_But she wasn't safe yet!_

_She needed to get away!_

"_Cinder…"_

_She needed to…_

"_Cinder!"_

_Needed…_

"_CIIIIINDER!"_

Her eyes flew open with a start, as a shrill whistling noise seemingly tried to punch her eardrums out. In a fluid motion, she intercepted the hand holding the cursed thing that was responsible for this horrendous sound, and pulled it down, while she slipped out of the bed, turning herself around to pin the perpetrator against it.

Silver eyes widened comically as they made contact with hers and a sheepish grin spread over the young girl's face.

"Good morning, Cinder."

Cinder cocked her eyebrow at her.

This wasn't the first time that their mother thought sending Ruby to wake her up was a good Idea and it probably wouldn't be the last one either.

Sighing loudly she let go of her younger sister and shook her head in disbelief at the sight of the whistle in her left hand.

"Really, Ruby?"

Running a hand through her unruly curls she looked at the clock on her nightstand.

Six o'clock.

She could have slept for at least another hour…

Well…if the nightmare wouldn't have woken her up before that.

So in a way, maybe she should be grateful that Ruby did wake her after all.

Everything was better than living through her past again. As glad as she was that it would always end with her _finding_ her new family, she preferred not to think about her old life too much.

Ruby's grin widened. Standing up from Cinder's bed, she beamed, holding the whistle in front of her.

"I thought it would come in handy.

Yang gave it to me.

She said it will help me make new friends, once we're at Beacon!"

'_Oh!'_

Right.

Her sisters would attend Beacon this year. It would be the first time all three of them visited the same school together and it was all thanks to Roman Torchwick. Ruby's fight against him and that mysterious girl, who had helped him to get away, had apparently impressed the headmaster of Beacon, Ozpin, enough to let her enroll two years early.

She really ought to talk to Neo about this.

Cinder knew that, after she had recruited the mute girl, her uncle had cut all ties with her.

Something that had hurt Neo deeply and took her nearly a year to recover from.

So him suddenly appearing out of nowhere again, clearly involved in some sort of robbery scheme, was highly alarming in her opinion.

Not the fact that he was a criminal, no, that would be very hypocritical of her.

After all, all of Cinder's teammates had a…questionable past to say the least. They all had been involved in some shady things throughout their lives.

That was why they worked so hard to be the best.

To show the rest of Remnant what _lost causes_ could actually do.

Team CMNE, the band of misfits, currently the highest ranking team in their year, would revolutionize the world!

"Sure", she answered Ruby absentmindedly, while searching for her clothes, as she rummaged through her already packed bag, "if you want them to avoid you, be my guest."

Out of the corner of her eyes she could see the younger girl's expression fall.

'_Guess I could have worded that better.'_

Sighing softly, she ran her fingers through black hair, tugging a few lose strands behind her ear, as she let up from her bag and turned around, mustering her sister thoughtfully.

"Look, if you want to make new friends, just…be yourself."

_Be yourself, kid. _

_You're not as scary as you might think._

…

Well, at least that sounded closer to actual advice a big sister would give.

"Yeah…that's what Ma keeps telling me too…", Ruby muttered almost inaudible, lowering her eyes towards the ground, as she tried to avoid Cinder's probing gaze.

'…_strange.'_

That should have at least provoked a smile out of her.

Normally she wouldn't pass up the chance to tease Cinder for her choice of words.

"Alright, out with it, what is troubling you?"

If she knew one thing about the girl in front of her it was how passionate she was when it came to Beacon and being a Huntress. She had wanted to become one since she had been a small child, tagging along to Cinder's own training sessions and then later on Yang's, just to start training as early as possible, which in retrospect made her current mood somewhat peculiar.

"I thought attending Beacon was your dream. How come you are so gloomy all of a sudden?"

"Oh, I…I had a talk with Yang the other day and she told me everyone at Beacon will think I'm the bee's knees, but…I don't want to be the bee's knees. I don't wanna be any kind of knees! I just want to be a normal girl with normal knees…"

"You don't want them to think that you are special."

"I'm not like you…I just want to…blend in and not draw attention to the fact that I got moved ahead two years."

A small smile spread over the dark haired girl's face at that. Call it what you want, but she did like to be reminded that she was one of a kind.

"For the record, no one can be like me!

And no one can be like you either. But that doesn't mean you will get special treatment.

Fact is, no one in Beacon will think you are the _bee's knees _as you put it. You got there because you are good at fighting Grimm?

Awesome, so did they."

Cinder paused, as she crossed the distance between them and put her right hand on her little sister's shoulder.

"What I mean is", she continued in a slightly softer tone, "You getting in two years early won't matter to them. So if you don't want unwanted attention you won't get it unless of course, you do something extraordinary to warrant it."

"Like you and your team did at your initiation?"

She smirked at that. Her initiation had certainly been a spectacle, that's for sure. She never had been scolded and praised so much for one and the same thing in her entire life.

"Yes, you probably shouldn't try something like that, if you want to fly under the radar."

Ruby pouted at that.

Seriously, the girl couldn't seem to make up her mind, could she?

"But that's the best part of it, fighting monsters with my beloved Crescent Rose."

Giving her sister a pointed look seemed to do the trick though, as she gave in with an overdramatic sigh.

"Ugh, fine, but if the others start to treat me like a little kid, I won't guarantee for anything."

She had half a mind to retort: "Then don't act like one" to her, but she still had too much to prepare for school and frankly this conversation was going on long enough. Not to mention that it was probably…not the most considerate thing to say.

She definitely was not a morning person.

"Glad to be of help.

Now, get out of my room!"

Ruby didn't even seem surprised, instead she speeded to the door without complaining…too much. Cinder watched her hesitate at the doorstep for a few seconds, before she turned her head once more and gave her a warm smile.

"Thanks sis."

"Look who finally got out of bed", were the first words that greeted Cinder when she finally managed to join the rest of her family in the living room.

She rolled her eyes in response.

Typical Yang.

Her sisters sat on the couch, each of them holding a plate full of pancakes with way too much syrup on top of them.

Ruby had stopped shoveling that sugary sweet into her mouth and gave her a quick smile, before continuing to apparently inhale her food.

…just what was it with Ruby and food honestly?

She could hear the clatter of dishes sounding from the kitchen, which probably meant, their mother still wasn't completely finished with preparing breakfast for all of them.

So despite waking up way too early, she somehow still managed to be late for the first handout.

Muttering a soft curse under her breath, she sat down across from her sisters, crossing her arms impatiently.

She had wanted to get going as soon as possible to meet with Emerald and the rest of her team, before boarding the airship.

'_Oh well…guess it can't be helped now.'_

"What's wrong, sis?

Afraid of keeping your top spot at school, now that me and Ruby are joining?"

Cinder stomped down the impulse to roll her eyes again.

Great, now she had to deal with Yang's self-proclaimed rivalry for the next two years.

That sounded like fun…not.

"It's Ruby and _I _actually", she shot back, allowing herself a pleased smirk, as Yang's expression soured.

"Like I asked, know it all!"

"Now, now, is that any way to talk to your sister?"

"Mom!", literally all three of them managed to call out almost in tandem, as Raven Branwen stepped through one of her very famous portals and joined them in the living room.

Not that this was an unusual occurrence, but one could never be too sure about when their mom decided to drop by. The disbelief must have still been shown on their faces, at least on Yang's, because Raven rolled her eyes at them and stemmed her hands into her hips.

"Don't look so shocked. I wouldn't miss your big day."

"Mom…I-", began Yang, still watching their mother as if she had just seen a ghost.

Maybe she had. Cinder knew how much her younger sister looked forward to Raven's visits. How much she wished to impress her really.

But before the blonde could finish her sentence another voice could be heard coming from the kitchen.

"Raven, did you use your semblance again?"

Summer appeared in the doorway, balancing several more dishes loaded with pancakes on her arms, staring at their mom with something that looked like a stern pout, causing Raven to scowl, crossing her arms defensively.

"What? You didn't like me coming through the window last time."

"Why can't you just use the door like a normal person?"

Sighing loudly, Summer broke their staring contest and huffed a bit.

"…fine. Here, you can carry your own plate then."

Raven for her part simply shrugged, after Summer literally pushed a plate of pancakes into her hands, and seated herself next to Cinder, who was handed her own portion finally.

Cinder would never admit to it, but she did enjoy a sweet breakfast just as much as her sisters, especially if it was made by Summer. Nothing against Raven's cooking skills, but the last time she had tried to make them something the kitchen had looked as if a horde of Ursas had been trampled through it, Summer's words, not hers. The meal had been pretty decent, but it hadn't been quite worth all the hours it took to repair and clean the kitchen after that.

As the dark haired girl started to eat she threw a sideway glance at her mothers. Raven, who was apparently fed up with being ignored, dragged Summer down onto her lap, muffling the small squeak she let out by surprise by kissing her softly as some sort of unspoken apology and murmured something into her ear that she couldn't hear, but that made her mother's face flush almost as red as Raven's eyes. When the bandit tried to feed her some pancakes next, cocking her head to the side and smiled at the woman she loved with her most charming smile her mother practically melted on the spot.

Cinder exchanged a knowing look with Ruby and Yang at that display. The younger girl grinned almost bashfully, while the older one just rolled her eyes and she couldn't fault them for this. Everyone in this family knew that Summer never stayed mad at Raven for long. Sometimes the siblings even made bets about it. Cookies being the favorite inset most of the time.

Noticing the stares their mothers broke away from each other, as Raven cleared her throat and tried to start a conversation.

"Tai already left?"

Thankful for that practical icebreaker Summer nodded and sat down right next to her.

"Yes, he had some kind of teacher conference before the semester starts."

"It can't be helped then.

So…", Raven's eyes landed on Ruby who had continued stuffing her face with her second helpings, "are you ready for your own team, Tiny Summer?"

Like a deer caught in the headlights, the younger girl swallowed visibly after almost chocking on her food.

"Oh…uh…I don't know if I'm leader material…"

"Nonsense, your mother was one of the best and seeing as Cinder here will obviously win the Vytal-"

"I know my team will top even yours, Cinder!", Yang called out fully motivated while slapping her fist and hand together soundly, giving her sister a challenging look "Better be prepared for the Yang bomb to hit ya."

"In your dreams maybe", replied Cinder sassily, almost at the same time their mom inquired:

"Your team?", startling both her and Yang for a moment, both of their eyes landing on Raven.

"Well…yeah…I'm gonna be a team leader as well, you know?", said the blonde with something akin to hesitation, causing Summer to jump in in support.

"Of course you will, sweetie.

We believe in you, all of us do."

Raven's first reaction at those words were her furrowing her brows, throwing a quizzically look to Summer, before being subtly punched into the ribs by her, without breaking eye contact with Yang.

Sometimes things like these happened. Raven not being atuned to Yang's feelings and vice versa. It had never culminated into a full on fight, but if Cinder had to guess it was one of the biggest driving forces behind her and Yang's _rivalry_.

She knew she was something akin to Raven's favorite, but in the end that wasn't her fault, nor was it her problem.

_You only got that because you are his favorite!_

…

"…right", answered their mother after a rather long pause, her red eyes meeting Yang's for a second before looking away.

An awkward silence settled between all of them, neither really knowing how to steer the conversation back to a more pleasant topic.

In the end it was Summer who succeeded in letting the almost palpable uneasiness evaporate…by being the concerned mother she was.

"Oh Cinder, could you please stay with your sisters for a while? At least until you all reach Beacon?"

"Ma!"

The aircraft was as crowded as usual. Normally Cinder didn't care so much about that, but being stuck with her younger sisters in the first year section was getting on her nerves after a while. All these hyper, enthusiastic people thinking they were entitled to be here. How many of them actually had to fight with the authorities? How many of them actually knew the real world, the real Remnant?

She leaned casually against a wall, trying not to look as bored as she momentarily felt while she checked her scroll.

Still nothing.

She had tried to contact Emerald about a dozen times now. None of her teammates had deemed it important enough to reply.

Oh well.

She only hoped…

As the chatter around them stopped abruptly her gaze immediately snapped to the screen depicting the most recent news.

They were talking about Roman Torchwick.

'_Shit!'_

That was exactly what she had been worried about.

She hadn't been able to get in touch with Neo beforehand. And if this newscast was shown here it was shown in the third year section as well.

Balling her hands into fists she cursed silently under her breath, as she excused herself rather hastily from Ruby and Yang and made her way to the hallway. There was a small twinge of guilt, as her eyes met Ruby's, who still looked so insecure about herself and her situation. But she knew exactly how people would react to Neo. How they would try to harass her. She would be there for Ruby some more after she dealt with that.

Her team needed her more right now.

* * *

_Try to enjoy your first year at Beacon._

_'That's right..._

_Try to calm down..._

_No need to be nervous..._

_You can do this!'_

Pyrrha sighed in relief when she finally passed the aircraft security and escaped the large crowd of people that called themselves her fans. It's not that she hasn't felt flattered the first times this had happened, but over the course of literal months...it had become quite frequent. And here she had thought moving to Vale would make a difference.

Maybe all of this was a mistake after all.

Coming to Beacon...

Everything was so...different from home...and she still hadn't been able to form a single friendship since she moved here.

_'__It's probably better this way'_

_Try to enjoy your first year at Beacon._

...god, she really missed her mom...

Heraima Nikos hadn't particularly liked the thought of her only daughter becoming a world renowned Huntress, but seeing how happy it made her, how fulfilling this path was to her, she had begrudgingly accepted it and given Pyrrha her blessing. The redhead couldn't have wished for a better and more understanding mother even if she wanted to.

She may have hoped her daughter would chose a simpler and more safer live, one where she didn't have to risk her wellbeing constantly...or was chased by excessive fans, but in the end she did enrol her into Sanctum Academy. And that had been everything that Pyrrha had wanted for so long. Even after it became clear that she was apparently a true prodigy, making a name for herself as the _invincible girl_ her mother never once questioned her decision. To the contrary, moving to Vale and enrolling in Beacon had all been her idea. She really was that supportive.

Pyrrha should have been ecstatic...she was...but...

_'What am I-?'_

Her thoughts where abruptly interrupted when she forcefully collided with another person, throwing her off balance in the process. She tumbled, already feeling herself disconnecting from the floor underneath her, but then, so fast she almost didn't catch sight of it, a hand reached out to her, holding onto her waist and keeping her afoot long enough for her to steady herself again.

"Are you alright?"

Even more startled, Pyrrha's eyes darted to her _rescuer. _Amber, or maybe gold, was the first thing that her vision caught, as she took in the person now standing in front of her.

The owner of those really mesmerizing eyes seemed to be a girl, appearing not much older than her, staring at her with something akin to curiosity. They were funnily around the same height, so Pyrrha must have been really zoned out to have not noticed her sooner. The girl cocked her head to the side, her curly, dark hair falling over her left shoulder in the process, as her gaze landed on her hand still on Pyrrha's waist, a small smirk flitting over her features as she disentangled her hand and stepped back, allowing the redhead to breathe freely again. She hadn't even realized she had been holding it to begin with.

_'How weird...'_

Now with a bit more space between them, she could make out the Beacon uniform the dark haired girl was already wearing, which meant she was at the very least in the right airship.

One could never be too sure while being chased by a mass of fans.

The other mustered her strangely now, her smirk giving way to a frown and Pyrrha realized with sudden clarity that she had spent the last few minutes just straight up staring dumbfounded at the stranger in front of her without ever answering her question.

"I'm sorry!", she finally said embarrassed, her cheeks flushing slightly, as she frantically tried to organize her jumbled thoughts again.

"I didn't watch where I was going."

The other girl's expression went from mild concern to amuse almost immediately.

Well...at least one of them seemed to find this awkward situation entertaining.

The seconds ticked by and Pyrrha began to look around somewhat nervously.

Those fans sure had made her a bit jumpy...or maybe it was the dark haired girl's intense look that just didn't let up.

She was onto her, wasn't she?

Figuring out just who she was and then...

Letting out a tired sigh, she tried to smile politely.

...she really needed a break from...all of this, at least for a while.

_'Stop deluding yourself!'_

A soft melodic sound reached her ears, as the other girl begun to chuckle.

"You sure are nervous, aren't you?"

Nervous?

No, more like-

But before Pyrrha was even able to finish her thoughts, let alone answer the question, the stranger threw her a charming smile and added pleasantly:

"And no need to take all the blame. I haven't been paying attention to where I was going as well."

The girl gave her another searching look.

"You are a first year."

It sounded more like a statement than a question, but Pyrrha nodded nonetheless.

"Yes...", she said hesitantly, eying the other girl with confusion.

There still seemed to be no recognition whatsoever, which was good, but-

"What's your name?"

_'Huh?'_

Did...she really not know?

But why had she looked at her so strangely then?

Was she aware of-?

No, that would be absolutely ridiculous.

She must really not recognize her.

It was so rare to meet people like that, seeing as almost everyone knew her as the _invincible girl_.

The dark haired stranger must have misinterpreted her silence for hesitation on her part, because she seemingly shrugged and offered her her hand.

"Cinder Branwen. I'm a third year student at Beacon."

Pyrrha didn't know why, but that girl, Cinder, did intrigue her. There was this...pull for a lack of a better word, incredibly soft, but definitely present. It almost felt like...

_'Destiny...'_

A small smile spread over her face, as she shook the outstretched hand.

"Pyrrha Nikos. It's nice to meet you."

She looked at the other girl intently to gauge her reaction.

...nothing.

The name really didn't seem to tell her anything.

Did Cinder just not keep up with the media and commercials?

"Well aren't you polite?", asked Cinder certainly amused.

"That wasn't so scary now, was it?"

The redhead's eyes widened, as it sunk in just how insecure she must have appeared to the other girl and she hurriedly raised her hands in front of her in a desperate attempt to explain herself.

"Oh no, I'm...actually only surprised you don't know me...eh, recognize me, I mean."

She trailed off when she saw Cinder furrowing her eyebrows, an unreadable expression on her face.

"Should I?", the dark haired girl asked with something akin to...mockery? She wasn't sure.

Trying to ignore that tone Pyrrha tried to explain herself further.

"Not at all, I'm just...kind of famous around certain parts of Anima, so I thought-"

"That I would fan girl over you as soon as I figured out your identity?"

The redhead's eyes widened in shock once more. That wasn't what she had meant at all.

"No! I would more than like it if people don't..."

She trailed off.

Cinder's smile had returned in full, her amber eyes glowing with mirth.

Pyrrha didn't really appreciate how that girl was talking to her. Her eyes narrowed slightly, as her voice dropped to a stern tone.

"I'm sorry, but I really don't like the way you're-"

"I am joking, of course."

_'She really loves talking all over me, doesn't she?'_

She gave Cinder a doubtful look that she returned with a pleased expression of her own.

Just what was this girl's deal?

"But you do remind me of some other first year student who doesn't want to be seen as _special_."

That did catch her interest. Another prodigy?

She should take note of this.

"And who do you mean by that?", she asked, her voice still having a slight, concerned edge to it.

She really didn't feel like being made even more fun of right now. Watching Cinder carefully, she saw the older girl shrugging nonchalant, never once losing that almost overbearing smirk of hers.

"How about...I introduce you to them? Seeing as you already missed Miss Goodwitch's speech and all."

As much as this girl rattled her at the moment, it was probably a smart idea. Better than standing around in the hallway. Cinder apparently thought she didn't need to wait for an answer, as she simply turned around and walked into the direction she obviously had come from before bumping into her. Pyrrha sighed almost resigned, but followed her nonetheless.

The corridor of the airship was really more longwinded than she had imagined, with the occasional windows and different branches dividing their way. If there weren't any holographic signs pointing to the first year section Pyrrha was sure many students would have gotten lost by now.

Finally the narrow path gave way to a more spacious room with several people standing around in small groups, seemingly chatting with each other in total excitement.

Who could fault them?

Getting into Beacon was no small feat. And the next four years were promising to be the greatest of their lives.

...at the very least they wouldn't be boring.

Still following the dark haired girl she was led to two other girls standing a bit offside from the others. The taller one, with hair so impossibly blond that Pyrrha wasn't sure if she may be able to radiate like the sun, was talking animatedly to the smaller one, whose hair appeared to be a perfect mix of dark red and black. Both of them seemed to wear their usual Huntress attire, but then again, none of them had started Beacon. They would get the standard uniform once they formed their teams.

When Cinder drew nearer to them, the girls threw her a quizzical look.

"Back so soon, sis?", the blonde haired girl shot at them almost immediately, a big grin spreading over her face, as she stemmed both of her hands into her hips.

'_Sis?'_

So Cinder and her were sisters?

"Who's your friend there?", asked the smaller girl, mustering the redhead with curiosity.

Her tone was definitely far more pleasant than the mocking one she had picked up from Cinder and her sister.

Before Pyrrha could even step forward to introduce herself, the taller girl patted the smaller one's shoulder with a short laugh.

"Oh c'mon Rubes, Cinder doesn't do friends.

So what poor soul did you drag here?"

The girl sounded almost challenging, but all it did was cause Cinder to roll her eyes at her, while she motioned towards her.

"This is Pyrrha Nikos and let me tell you she has far more manners than you will ever have."

She sighed almost dramatically when she turned her head to Pyrrha and just vaguely pointed to the girls in return.

"These two are my younger sisters. The one with the big mouth is Yang Xiao-Long and this..."

She paused, as she realized that the smaller girl had stepped closer to the redhead while she had talked, looking incredibly transfixed at her...armor?

Chuckling softly, Cinder finished her sentence.

"This weapon crazed little monster is called Ruby Rose."

Rose, Xiao-Long, Branwen?

Wait...those were three entirely different last names. Pyrrha had heard of siblings having two different ones before, but three?

That certainly was weird.

Not that it mattered to her right now. She supposed she was...somewhat grateful to Cinder for...trying to introduce her to her fellow classmates. Though she supposed that the real reason she did that might have to do with her younger sister, Ruby. She wasn't an expert on guessing someone's age, but it was very obvious the smaller girl was younger than 17. She was definitely the person Cinder had been talking about before.

Peering at the dark haired girl out of the corner of her eyes, a small smile managed to steal itself across her face. That was awfully considerate of her.

Maybe there was more to the girl than she thought.

"It's nice...to meet both of you", said Pyrrha, as her gaze snapped back towards Yang and Ruby, the latter still eying her up and down, literally squealing once she caught sight of her weapon, zooming into her personal space while giving her the most excited look she had ever seen.

"Oooooh, is that a spear? Is it a special type of spear? What can it do? Is your shield relevant? Can it transform?"

"Uhm..."

...wow...

The redhead literally wasn't sure how to respond to that onslaught of questions. Not that she ever got asked on interviews about them, but there she was able to determine the pace. This...was entirely new to her, but...it felt...nice?

People who didn't know her, who treated her as they would any other person.

Likeminded souls, wanting to become Huntsmen and Huntresses, sharing their excitement.

"Well, I leave you to it then, I was actually on my way to the senior section, can't have my team's reputation tarnished by hanging out with newbies."

Cinder's words caught her by surprise. Was that where she had been headed before running into Pyrrha?

Yang on the other hand didn't seem faced, leaning against a window cocking her head to the side in a similar fashion as her sister had done earlier.

"Oh please, you only want to go so your girlfriend can worship the ground you walk on some more."

The dark haired girl simply shrugged and stretched herself, as she turned on her heels and began to walk away from them, only throwing a:

"Jealous, Yang?", right back at her.

"As if."

"Say hi to Em for us", chimed Ruby in, waving after her sister, who waved back lazily over her shoulder with one hand while checking her scroll with the other, slowly disappearing into the crowd of students, leaving Pyrrha with her sisters.

Somewhat nervously the redhead's gaze flitted between Yang and Ruby, before raising her own hand giving both of them a short wave accompanied with a soft smile.

"Hello again."

Yang threw her a quick grin.

"Hope Cinder didn't intimidate you too much.

She's got a slight case of egomania."

"Yang!", scolded Ruby her sister, who simply stuck out her tongue in response, looking outside the window.

The smaller girl pouted before addressing Pyrrha, her hands fiddling with the seam of her red cape.

"Don't listen to her...they always talk to each other like that."

Yes...Pyrrha could imagine that very well actually. Not that she had any experience on that matter, but she had read about sibling rivalry sometime.

Anyway, maybe now was a good time to finally strike some real conversation with someone. After all, Ruby and her might have something in common.

"I...see, so what-?"

"Look at the view, Rubes! You too Pyrrha!"

'_Seriously?!'_

What was it with that family and interrupting others while they talked?

She trailed after Ruby to the window and followed her line of sight.

There, sitting right before a very impressive cliff's edge, was the school, overlooking the city of Vale. With Beacon tower being its highest point it did look like a castle.

A castle from a forgotten fairy tale.

"So this...is Beacon."

Pyrrha was so entranced by the sight that she only barely noticed Yang calling it their home now. She also almost blacked out the following commotion about a boy appearing to suffer from motion sickness vomiting over the blonde's shoes.

Staring at the larger and larger growing school it finally sunk in...

There was no turning back anymore.

_Try to enjoy your first year at Beacon._

* * *

**AN: Hello again =)**

**After taking a long break from writing, mostly because of college and personal**

**issues, I feel somewhat more confident to finally start my RWBY Summerlife AU.**

**Also special thanks at Laulink for naming Pyrrha's mom!**

**I hope you enjoy the ride ^^**


	2. Chapter 2

"What were the three of you thinking?!"

Cinder couldn't say this was her first time in Professor Goodwitch's office, but she certainly never managed to get herself hauled here before the semester had even officially started.

And to be honest, this was definitely not how she had envisioned it to begin. If only she hadn't collided with that girl, as fascinating as this encounter had been, then she would have been able to stop this ridiculous fight from breaking out. Not reaching any of them, especially Emerald, should have been a clear warning sign.

And yet she had foolishly thought the years all of them had attended this prestigious school would have changed peoples' hearts. Make them more agreeable to their presence here…to further tolerance, but she shouldn't have gotten her hopes up. Just like the bullying of Faunus was still a common non-punishable offense, they were still outsiders.

They all came from questionable backgrounds.

Beacon Academy might pride itself on being one of the best schools out there, but it had lackluster rules.

A system only suitable for those who fit in…and she and her team didn't fulfill these criteria.

Under normal circumstances none of them would have been accepted here…and the people around them made sure they never forgot that fact…be it students…or teachers.

Cinder's face was almost expressionless as she stared at Professor Goodwitch, who had turned away from them for a brief moment to sigh demonstrative. Peeking out of the corner of her eyes she observed her battered looking teammates. Mercury especially seemed to have a hard time keeping quiet and not badmouthing their vice principal, whereas Emerald just appeared disgruntled and worried, her eyes flitting around the room nervously. Only Neo had her head downcast, her hair obscuring her face from the piercing glare Professor Goodwitch gave them once she turned around again.

"Fighting aboard the aircraft. You could have caused a serious accident!"

"That wasn't our fault!" retorted Mercury hotly, as he took a bold step forward,

"They started it!"

The professor cocked her left eyebrow, her mood apparently dropping even more, as her expression darkened slightly.

"And you think this gives you the right to resort to violence, Mister Black?"

"We-"

Quick-witted Cinder stepped in front of him, successfully cutting her teammate off. She needed to steer this conversation around before it escalated and if there was one thing she was good at it was rhetoric. Maybe not so much on the…socializing side, but authoritarian she was quite skilled at.

"If I may, I heard the other party hasn't been shy to throw punches either. Why is only my team reprimanded here?"

Narrowing her eyes at the dark haired girl, Glynda adjusted her glasses to keep them from slipping down her nose, her tone mildly frustrated. Not that Cinder could blame her. She knew exactly what buttons to push to bend the rules in her favor after all.

"Miss Branwen, clearly you do remember the conditions your team agreed on to get accepted at Beacon, don't you? One of them being not to cause any trouble or major disturbances."

'…_what?'_

Cinder blinked at that.

This…was not what she had expected. Was she threatening her team?

Well, she was out of luck then.

Stemming her hands into her hips, her expression soured a bit.

"It still isn't fair to-"

"What isn't _fair,_ is the fact that you cheated to gain your position, your team, where others had to put in serious effort and yet, here we are!"

The dark haired girl was taken aback.

Really?

This again?

But before she could respond to Glynda's rather rude statement, the Professor's eyes narrowed, her voice gaining a steely edge, as she seemed to muster her closely, holding up one hand to stop her from answering.

"Be that as it may be, you have expected us countless of times to turn a blind eye to each and every misstep and rule violation you and your team have made and frankly I think it is time to stop doing that. Maybe this will be an opportunity for you to show us that you indeed earned your title as team leader."

'…_earned it?'_

The second these words were out, the atmosphere in the room dropped, an almost inaudible gasp leaving Emerald behind her, as she took a step closer to her.

Cinder paled.

It was strange.

She had clashed so many times with her instructors. Having them doubt her abilities was just laughable and yet…

_Do you believe you earned that, Cinderella?_

An unpleasant shudder ran down her spine, as she shot that thought down immediately. She could feel the tone shift, when her teammates, now visibly angry again, began to move closer subtly. The animosity radiated off of them in spades, she didn't even need to turn around to check if she was right in her assumption, she just knew she needed to deescalate the situation.

She couldn't let Glynda get another reason to prosecute them.

Instinctively she raised her arm, almost functioning as a barrier between Glynda and her teammates, forcing her face to go as blank and emotionless as she possibly could.

_Don't let them see your fear, Cinder._

"You are right," she finally responded to the Professor, trying not to betray the anger boiling inside her, keeping her voice steady, "As their team leader, I will take full responsibility for their actions."

"Boss!"

"Cinder, no!"

Mercury and Emerald had both bridged the distance between them, the latter even going as far as to softly pull on her arm. Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw Neo vigorously shaking her head, the sorrow in her expression obviously catching Professor Goodwitch off guard, as her gaze wandered over her teammates each at a time apprehensively until it rested on her again with something akin to…alarm?

Was Glynda afraid of them?

Of her?

But why?

'_That's stupid!'_

No, Cinder must have interpreted her look in a wrong way. Professor Goodwitch was a lot of things, but being afraid of her students was probably not one of them.

A deep sigh escaped their teacher's lips, as she pinched the bridge of her nose and leaned back into her office chair, fixing them with a rather tired look.

"I will be lenient today, seeing as it's the start of the year, but if something like this happens again there will be serious consequences!"

Her eyes seemed to bore into Cinder's at those words, making the girl fight the urge to roll her eyes and scowl back at her. With a swift motion of Glynda's hand she pointed at the door.

"You're dismissed."

xxxxxxxxxx

The moment Cinder stepped outside of that office she felt the tension leave her body, the stiffness in her bones being the only reminder of how much energy it had taken to remain as compliant as she had. Normally she might have just shrugged it off as another small obstacle the academy wanted to throw in their way. As much as it pained her to admit it, it seemed like her nightmare shook her more than she had originally thought.

Walking down the hallway she mildly gritted her teeth, balling her hands into fists.

Why now?

She was supposed to be over that already.

The past didn't matter anymore.

Her family…her mothers, her sisters, her team, all of them were much more important to her than the betrayals and tribulations of her former life.

Exhaling loudly, she ripped herself out of her thoughts and only now realized that she was walking alone.

Stopping abruptly, she turned around and saw her teammates had stopped a few meters away from her, guilt and anger written over their faces, no one even dared to make eye contact with her.

Furrowing her brows, Cinder stepped towards them, more than a little confused.

"What is it?"

Emerald was the first to react, albeit hesitantly, looking up from the ground, giving her a weak smile.

"We're sorry, Cinder," she said, almost ruefully,

"I- …We didn't mean to cause any trouble for you."

The dark haired girl's eyes widened in disbelief, her mouth opening slightly as if to respond, but she found herself unable to speak.

Did they really think…?

Her gaze flitted to Mercury and Neo. Both looked just as uncomfortable and guilty as Emerald, staring at everything but her, shuffling their feet.

The green haired thief apparently took her silence as a bad sign, lowering her head again, her tone dropping.

"If you're mad at us then we can-"

'_What the hell?'_

"Why would I be mad at you?", she interrupted her girlfriend rather loudly, causing her head to snap right back up in wonder, "That's ludicrous!"

Crossing the distance between them completely, she couldn't help but roll her eyes at Mercury's almost relieved, "It is?" before turning towards Neo, extending her hand and laying it on the girl's shoulder, squeezing it gently.

"I never got the chance to ask…

How are you holding up, Neo?"

Neo appeared more than surprised at her soft tone, the colors of her eyes reverting quickly, as she cocked her head to the side, as if to debate how best to answer her question.

Cinder couldn't really fault any of them for their reactions.

Old habits died hard. She knew this all too well.

In the end, Neo decided to try for a cheerful smile…which turned out to be more of a grimace really.

This simply wouldn't do.

While she didn't particularly like spontaneous touches and the invasion of her space without a fair warning first, she couldn't help but envelope Neo into a hug.

A hug the girl so obviously needed.

"Whatever happens, we're here for you. We'll figure out why he's back, I promise."

She could feel the girl's arms squeeze around her, reciprocating it.

This was her team. Cinder would be damned if someone dared to mess with them under her watch. Raising her head she found Emerald's and Mercury's eyes once more, who looked at the scene in front of them with a mix of pity and deep rooted understanding.

"Forget what Goodwitch said!"

Her voice was steady, full of conviction, ridding herself of the last traces of doubt that had clung to her after Glynda's words.

"You did the right thing. I'm proud of you."

She pulled back, untangling herself from Neo, a pleased smile spreading over her features, her gaze landing on one of the giant windows, as she caught a glimpse of a red hooded girl sprinting towards the academy.

It appeared that at least one of her sisters was running late for their entrance ceremony…speaking of which.

Cocking her head to the side, she motioned to the rooftop of the 3rd year dormitories. There was no way in hell she would go out of her way to see Goodwitch a second time today.

Plus, it would show her that her threats hadn't been as effective as she might have hoped.

"Come, let's get out of here."

Emerald blinked at her in confusion.

"But…the headmaster's speech, the entrance ceremony…?"

"-Is of no consequence to us!"

Her teammates looked at each other, as it slowly dawned on them what Cinder meant, if Mercury's sudden smirk was anything to go by, as he crossed his arms behind his head leisurely.

"You got it, boss."

xxxxxxxxxx

It was almost like tradition. They would meet at the roof and just let their minds wander.

Sometimes they joked and talked, others they'd enjoy the peace and silence the dusk brought them after a very rough school day. It varied depending on the circumstances.

Right now Cinder thought they could all use a break from authorial figures for a moment…and their obnoxious classmates of course.

Silently, they had settled on the roof, all four of them next to each other. After a while Emerald had cuddled against her, shivering a bit from the sharp breeze ruffling through her hair.

Since Cinder had known the girl, she had searched and yearned for affection…which had posed some problems at the beginning of their relationship. Someone who was as open and honest as Emerald had been bound to clash with her sooner or later. She could only be grateful they had been able to resolve this…and after all something good came out of this.

Without their fight Cinder would have never stumbled over their little friend and last addition to their team…well, unofficial addition…for now.

Putting an arm around her girlfriend, she tugged her a bit closer, laying her had atop of hers, staring into the setting sun, that painted the world in deep golden shades. If you looked closely enough the light flitting through the Emerald forest made it look like it was on fire. As if bright, hot flames engulfed the trees …a truly mesmerizing sight to behold.

She felt Emerald shift against her, sighing almost contently, breaking the silence that surrounded them.

"You know, this is kind of romantic."

The words weren't even completely out of her mouth, when loud snickering sounded right next to the former thief, causing her to scowl.

"Or it would be, if certain people would stop ruining the atmosphere!"

With her left hand she cuffed Mercury against his side, but he still didn't stop snickering, to the contrary, it grew even stronger.

"Oh Cinder," he tried to mimic Emerald, folding his hands, giving Cinder a faux pining look, "Won't you ride into the sunset with me?"

The dark haired girl rolled her eyes at him, but it didn't stop the smile from spreading over her face, while her girlfriend blushed profoundly, untangling herself from her, giving Mercury a sharp kick to the sheen.

"Shut it, jerk!"

Chuckling quietly, Cinder let one hand run through Emerald's hair fondly, earning her an involuntary, soft purr, as those red, earnest eyes found hers once more.

"Don't listen to him," she tried to placate her.

In the end she probably should be the one to mediate between them…seeing as she was their team leader she ought to be the mature and responsible one.

Her smile widened, as she nudged Emerald playfully.

"Riding is so outclassed. I'd rather fly into the sunset with you…preferably on the back of a mighty dragon."

…alright, so maybe she loved teasing her girlfriend as well.

She was only human after all.

"Cinder!" grumbled the former thief with a pout. "Stop getting my hopes up only to dash them."

"So you don't want to fly into the sunset with me?" the dark haired girl sighed dramatically. "How disappointing."

Turning away demonstrative, she crossed her arms, all while Mercury continued to snicker at Emerald's plight. Her eyes caught Neo's to her right, who gave her an eye roll, signing the word /Really?/ so exasperated that Cinder could swear she had heard her say it.

Seemed as if another one needed to be brought into the mix.

Time to change her tactic.

"Guess I'll have to take someone else then…"

She trailed off, looking pointedly around as if in deep thought, before motioning with her hand to Neo.

"How about you, Neo?"

The short girl changed her tune faster than fireworks, nodding enthusiastically at her offer, while smirking rather smugly at Emerald, whose eyes widened, as she frantically held up her hands, tugging at Cinder's as she stumbled over her words.

"No! I'd love to be taken by you-I mean-!"

She stopped herself from saying anything more, her face flushing a deep red, as she surged forward and burrowed her face against Cinder's neck, while her teammates laughed gleefully.

"Oh we know, Em," Mercury wheezed out, still very much in the mood to continue their ridiculous banter, but Cinder knew when to put an end to it.

With a gentle, but firm:

"I think that was enough teasing of the girlfriend for today", she said squeezing Emerald's shoulders tenderly.

"Fine," drawled the silver haired boy, leaning back again, as his gaze chased the last golden droplets of the sun. Light, as the dark haired girl knew, had always been a fascination for him. She even had an inkling as to why…but it wasn't her story to tell. She wouldn't pry. He would come to them when he was ready.

An easy silence settled between them, each one of them lost in their own little world for a while, before Neo tabbed on Cinder's shoulder with an almost wistful expression.

/Maybe we should check on Shriek…just so he knows we're back./

The girl's face fell even more when she added the last part…understandably.

Grasping her hand softly, Cinder nodded her head.

"We will, but for now…"

She could feel Emerald laying her head on her shoulder, closing her eyes peacefully, probably trying to forget today's trials. It made Cinder question whether her sisters' already made friends…aside from that Pyrrha girl she had brought to them…

She should probably visit them before nighttime was in session, or else her Ma would haunt her in her sleep.

Her gaze returned to the forest, as its trees began to cast deep shadows over the surrounding area. Faster and faster the darkness crept to their Academy. Inescapable and unrelenting…just like destiny.

'…_destiny…'_

"Let's just enjoy this."

* * *

**AN: Hello again =)**

**Sorry for the rather long hiatus, I had some stuff to deal with and I've come to the **

**decision that my chapters will be somewhat shorter from now on as to keep a two **

**week update schedule . It's either that, or getting a very long chapter once every **

**few months or so. **

**With that out of the way, enjoy ^^**


	3. Chapter 3

"So…this is Beacon."

Those were the first words Pyrrha could muster after exiting the aircraft with Yang and Ruby in tow. It was one thing seeing the Academy from above, but another to see it towering over them just at the end of the straight and narrow court way. She was so close to finally setting foot into the school of her dreams and yet…it didn't feel as satisfying as she had imagined it would a few years ago.

She could only silently agree with Ruby's almost inaudible "_Wow"_. If anything else, Beacon was impressive.

But not everyone seemed as entranced by the sight as them. Dozens of arriving students just shrugged and followed the path leading to the entrance gate, not paying their surroundings any mind.

A shame really, seeing as the school wasn't the only thing that caught Pyrrha's eyes.

But before she could make a break for the monument that had her so transfixed, Yang stretched herself with a yawn.

"Yep, definitely looks like it."

The blonde's attention was entirely focused on a farther away group of first years, taking a few steps into their direction.

"Anyway, I'm off. Need to find some recruits for my future team."

The red hooded girl's eyes widened in shock, reaching out for her sister.

"But-"

Only to be met with a cheerful smile and wave, as Yang sprinted off without hearing Ruby out.

"See ya later Rubes, Pyrrha."

Pyrrha looked after her in disbelief. Not that she was privy to their family dynamics or anything, but so much confidence was really astounding.

She really wondered where Cinder and Yang got it from…though it did seem to have skipped their sister for some reason, as she observed her slowly lowering her hand again in defeat.

The sight tugged on the redhead's heartstrings and she forced herself to muster a kind smile.

"So…do you want to search for future teammates as well?"

The hooded girl's head snapped back up to her, an uneasy expression on her face, as she shook her head.

"No…I…I don't think I'd be a good talker, or company, or…"

Taking a step towards her, Pyrrha laid her hand on her shoulder encouragingly.

"I think you would make a great leader, Ruby."

The girl's face immediately darkened at that, averting her eyes, looking at anything but her.

'_Did I…say something wrong?'_

How would she be able to salvage this? She hadn't had any real experience talking to people that weren't her fans, but she really wanted to lift Ruby's spirits again. She was kind of fond of her for some odd reason.

And she had a feeling sticking close to her might lead to another encounter with Cinder again.

She hadn't forgotten about this…weird pull, this…unexpected feeling of…security she had experienced in her company.

Their family seemed…mysterious of sorts. And mysteries were definitely worth writing about…even if they were only hunches. It would probably help her mother to cope with her situation better.

But first, she had to correct her mistake. Apparently she wasn't the only one being uneasy about certain things. That was kind of comforting in a roundabout way.

"Well then", the redhead drawled, trying to find a suitable topic to steer the conversation to,

"Do you want to-?"

"Oooh, look!"

Ruby's sudden outburst startled her in her tracks, her eyes following the now rather enticed girl as she practically jumped up and down, pointing at another passing student with her finger. To say the girl was excited would be an understatement.

"That kid has a collapsible stuff!"

Spinning around faster than Pyrrha could follow, Ruby almost floated after yet another person, the awe in her voice very prominent.

"And she's got a fire sword!"

'_Weapons.'_

Of course, how could she forget how curious the younger girl had been about hers on the ship?

Pyrrha couldn't help but chuckle at the adorable display, observing her companion with growing interest.

"You must really love weapons."

It took only this statement to get Ruby's attention back, as she spun around to face her with a wide smile.

"Of course, what's not to love?

They're an extension of ourselves!

They're a part of us!"

Bobbing up and down on her feet, she subconsciously clenched her hands into little balls of joyous tension, as she hugged them close to her chest, staring after yet another passing weapon, literally squealing this time.

"They're so cool!"

"Agreed."

Apparently Pyrrha had found the right conversational starter for them this time…and it certainly had been quite a while since she got to talk about this topic.

A yearning sigh escaped her, as she followed Ruby's line of sight, drawing her javelin and shield from her back, mustering them warmly.

"My mother helped me build mine", she explained softly, offering both of them up for the younger girl to inspect more closely,

"Their names are Miló and Akoúo."

Motioning towards Ruby's folded weapon curiously, her eyes lightened up. She had forgotten how exciting it could be to talk about this.

"What about you?

You're using a…?"

Ruby beamed at Pyrrha, her scythe basically skipping into her hands, as she called forth its full form, presenting it proudly.

"This is my beloved Crescent Rose!

I guess I did go a little overboard designing it."

"No, it's actually very impressive. I heard learning how to wield a scythe is rather difficult."

Ruby's ears flushed beat red at that, embarrassingly scratching her head with one of her hands, smiling sheepishly, her words a jumbled mess.

"Aw thankyousomuchidon'tknowwhattosay…", before snapping out of her stupor, as she transformed her scythe into a fire weapon, her ability to form coherent sentences returning full front.

"It's also a customizable, high impact velocity rifle."

Now that gun was something to behold. Pyrrha always found a wider range of weapons in transformations to be useful and allowed more fluidly adaptations to different situations in combat. But not everyone thought like that. It was actually really refreshing to meet someone as invested in creating weapons as her.

"So what do you like most about weapons?"

Ruby seemed to ponder a bit over her answer.

"I just really like seeing new ones.

It's like meeting new people…but better…"

The redhead found herself partially agreeing with her. A weapon could tell you so much about another person it was almost uncanny, but also strangely fascinating.

At Ruby's tone, her expression softened even more and in the spur of the moment she clunked Miló against Crescent Rose, gentle enough for it to not be a full on blow, but firm enough to make the girl look up at her in puzzlement.

"Then I am very grateful to have found a likeminded spirit in you."

Ruby's confusion gave way to nervousness, almost resembling shyness of sorts, as she flipped her weapon back up, twirling the portable form in her hands, asking hesitantly:

"Sooo…does that mean we're, you know…eh…friends?"

'_Friends…'_

She had never even entertained the thought of finding friends here. Too many people just saw her as a celebrity of sorts, wanting to befriend her, but mostly because they thought she was like the image she was told to sell to the world. Not that she could blame them…but it had taught her to not expect too much when it came to friendship.

Her gaze landed on the younger girl, who looked up at her with hopeful eyes.

Maybe it wouldn't be so bad to agree. There was still enough time if push came to shove and she had been told to enjoy her school year.

"I…suppose?", the redhead answered somewhat unsure, but smiling nonetheless.

"Really?

And here I didn't even have to use the whistle.

I need to tell Yang!"

In her excitement, Ruby spun around wildly, not noticing the luggage cart rolling up right behind her.

"Ruby!"

But Pyrrha's warning was too late. In mere seconds the younger girl collided with the trunks on the cart, falling onto her back and sending countless of suitcases flying to the ground with her.

"What are you doing!?", shrieked the apparent owner of said trunks, her white hair shimmering in the sunlight, just like the burning fury in her pale blue eyes.

All in all, Pyrrha had to admit that this girl had an air of superiority around her, so maybe she was someone important…someone high society?

It didn't matter at the moment though. In the heap of white suitcases, Ruby looked somewhat disoriented, discomfort clearly on her face once she realized that a strange girl was yelling at her.

As much as the redhead understood that this was a rather uncomfortable situation to be in, all would be forgotten once her new _friend _apologized.

"Uh…sorry."

There.

"Sorry?", the icy girl threw back in her face, stomping her feet in the process,

"Do you have any idea of the damage you could've caused?"

...or maybe not?

"Uh…"

It was obvious that Ruby was now more than a little bewildered, but she gathered up one of the fallen suitcases anyway, handing it up towards its owner with a sheepish smile, probably a last attempt to lighten the mood again.

Her tactic didn't seem to work on the white haired girl though.

"Give me that!", she said forcefully, basically ripping the trunk out of Ruby's hands, opening it to check its contents,

"This is Dust, mined and purified from the Schnee Quarry."

'_Schnee!'_

So this girl could actually be…

Slowly it began to dawn on Pyrrha that this might turn quite dangerous after spotting the dozen of Dust filled bottles and she took a step forward, trying to get the ice girl's attention.

"Uhm…"

But it seemed she was still way too focused on Ruby on the ground to notice her approaching, as she rummaged through the suitcase, procuring one of the bottles that held red Dust, causing alarm bells to go off in Pyrrha's head.

'_Fire Dust!'_

"What are you, brain dead?", continued the white haired girl annoyed, not at all bothered with shaking the fragile bottle in her hand with every word she uttered,

"Dust! Fire, Water, Lightning, Energy!"

It was just like Pyrrha predicted. The shaking caused small portions of the Dust to be set free and blown into Ruby's face, who furrowed her nose, spurring her into action, as she bridged the distance between them and caught the ice girl's wrist in a fluid motion, frowning at the unnecessary risk this person had taken, whether deliberately or not.

"I think she got the picture, no need to cause an accident with how careless you're handling your _mined _and_ purified_ Dust."

In retrospect she should have seen it coming. The moment her fingers grasped the white haired girl's wrist, she spun around to glare at whoever dared to lay a hand on her,

"Excuse me, who do you think you-",

only to abruptly stutter to a halt when she seemed to register just who stood before her, her voice full of wonder with an edge of utter disbelief.

"Gods, you're Pyrrha Nikos!"

'_Here we go again…'_

And here she had hoped against all odds that even more people would stay ignorant to her status.

Ruby scrambled back on her feet, rubbing her butt, as she looked between them curiously.

"You two know each other?"

The white haired girl huffed in annoyance, throwing yet another glare towards her.

"I certainly know _of_ her. Who hasn't heard of the _invincible girl_?"

"…invincible girl?"

Pyrrha grimaced. Of course it had been foolish to expect everyone would fail to recognize her, but she didn't quite like the condescending tone that was used to clue Ruby in.

"Unbelievable…", the maybe Schnee grumbled under her breath, motioning to Pyrrha in an offhanded manor.

"This is Pyrrha.

She graduated top of her class at Sanctum.

She's won the Mistral Regional Tournament 4 years in a row…a new record!

She's-"

"My friend!"

With just two words Ruby had managed to render not only Pyrrha, but the other girl, speechless. The redhead had thought for sure her fame would change the younger one's offer of friendship…or maybe be intimidating enough to cause a change of behavior in her…

But no, she was still as insistent, if a bit awed, as she had been before, giving her an encouraging smile.

"…pardon?"

"No, she is right!", Pyrrha decided to step in, gesturing to the younger girl, reciprocating the smile she send her way, "This…is my friend, Ruby."

The icy girl's eyes widened in shock, quickly assessing the situation, as her gaze flitted from Ruby to her and back again, receiving a small, unsure wave in return.

"I…guess I owe you an apology then", she finally said rather slowly, her face thoughtful.

Now that was unexpected. Pyrrha wasn't in the habit of accusing others of having ulterior motives, but the sudden change of tune from the white haired girl did feel a bit suspicious to her.

Ruby however apparently took her words at face value, a relieved smile adorning her features as she offered her hand.

"I'm sorry too. I should've watched where I was going."

"Yes! You should have!"

Swallowing harshly, the icy girl took a deep breath, inclining her head, as she shook the outstretched hand, her voice losing some of its steel.

"But it's the first day, so I'll forgive you just this once.

In case you couldn't already tell, I am Weiss Schnee, heiress to the Schnee Dust Company."

'_I knew it!'_

So she was a Schnee after all.

And not anyone, but the heiress herself. No wonder the trunk loaders standing behind them, scrambling for the scattered suitcases looked so nervous. It looked like she wasn't the only one forgoing her own kingdom to come to Beacon.

"…the what?"

Oh, true, Ruby probably didn't know about this as well. Turning around she pulled up her scroll, showing the younger girl a holographic miniature version of said company.

"The SDC is one of the largest producers of energy propellant in the world."

"Finally some recognition!"

It took everything from the redhead to not roll her eyes at that, as she lowered her voice, a steely edge to her tone, as she continued her explanation, looking at Weiss pointedly:

"Though there are also…all those complaints about controversial labor forces, I think."

"That's…well-", the Schnee's face flushed a deep red, stumbling over her words, as if she didn't know whether to be embarrassed or furious…only to be interrupted by a

"I'm sorry…is this a bad time?

I…think I'm kinda lost."

The newcomer immediately caught Pyrrha's attention. It was a boy, presumably their age, a first year student if she ever saw one, practically radiating off how insecure he was, but…there was something about him.

Something that intrigued her.

Her internal analysis of the boy was cut short however, when Ruby's eyes lit up, a quick chuckle escaping her lips, as she recognized him.

"Aren't you the guy that threw up on the ship?"

"Ew, seriously?!"

Weiss took a step back, her nose furrowing in disgust, as she mustered the blonde haired boy appraisingly.

"Hey, motion sickness is a much more common problem than people let on!", the newcomer tried to explain himself, holding his hands up in a defensive manner, as he scanned the area, seeming to hope someone would pop up and agree with him.

'_Poor guy…'_

"I'm sure it is."

Pyrrha almost felt compelled to help him out, giving him a, what she hoped, gentle and supporting smile.

The tension around all of them appeared to lessen somewhat and the boy relaxed enough to introduce himself with more conviction in his voice.

"I'm Jaune."

Shrugging at Weiss' behavior Ruby scratched the back of her head in embarrassment.

Though Pyrrha couldn't fault her for her words.

She couldn't have foreseen how the heiress would react to such a statement.

"Ruby, and those two are Pyrrha", she motioned to the redhead, before gesturing to Weiss,

"And Weiss."

Before either of the two could return the greeting, a cheeky grin appeared on Jaune's face, leaning forward into the white haired girl's personal space, his voice dropping a few notes.

"Hello there Snowangel-"

"No!"

Weiss almost jumped backwards startled, her eyes widening comically, before she was able to compose herself, muttering something under her breath that was almost too hard to make out, but Pyrrha caught it anyway:

"Ugh, the sacrifices I make to get my perfect team…"

So that was what she was after?

A perfect team?

Pyrrha knew reliable teammates were important, but was it really necessary to bend over backwards because of it?

The others didn't seem to have heard Weiss' words, instead they had just showed each other their weapons and chatted away unbothered.

It did appear Ruby was actually quite skilled at making friends. She was just a bit shy struck in the beginning. And Jaune, who had immediately reverted back to his more insecure persona after Weiss' shriek, brought out her goofy side even more.

"So…", drawled the heiress, her eyes resting on Pyrrha.

She could be mistaken, but the girl almost seemed…nervous?

Maybe her rudeness and entitlement was just her initial reaction of meeting new people?

One of the trunk loaders stepped forward cautiously, cutting off whatever Weiss had wanted to add further.

"Miss Schnee, I apologize, but I believe it is already past the mandatory meeting time."

Almost immediately Weiss looked at her own scroll to check the time and groaned.

"Of course, just what I needed.

Here!"

Pushing the suitcase she still had in her hands to her servant, she began to ran towards the school, throwing a quick glance back to find the others staring at her dumbfounded.

"Are you deaf? Let's move!"

'…_oh!'_

As soon as the words and their implication sunk in, the startled group sprinted after Weiss, leaving the trunk loaders behind. Thankfully the Schnee heiress seemed to know the way. It did strike Pyrrha as odd though that she managed to lose track of time.

She was usually so punctual.

And yet…she couldn't find it in her to regret having met and talked to these people, her classmates.

Would she actually be able to be like a normal student after all?

To blend in?

It was weird, but…she strangely felt happy at the thought.

This year was going to be great.

'_Welcome to Beacon.'_

* * *

**AN: Hello again =)**

**Just like promised, a regular update. Let's hope it continues like this XD**

**I hope the chapters being shorter didn't bother anyone. **

**Enjoy ^^**


	4. Chapter 4

Being Summer Rose's child wasn't easy. Since Ruby first expressed interest in becoming a huntress she had been compared to her mother. As if it wasn't already hard enough to stand a chance against her sisters, no, she apparently needed to compete against one of Vale's very own legendary fighters. Everyone had heard about team STRQ and their righteous but fearless leader.

And of course Ruby was proud to have a super mom like her.

It was just…

'_I'm not my Ma…'_

All the things she had done, her grades, her rather good instincts, pretty much all of her accomplishments had been attributed to her being just like Summer.

But she was not!

And Beacon would reveal exactly that…

She was going to be one giant disappointment when she wouldn't be chosen to lead a team. But…did she even want to?

Nevertheless, people would talk and tell her how unlike her mother and sisters she was…

There was just no winning this.

Ruby hadn't been able to focus on Professor Ozpin's entrance ceremony speech, she was too busy scanning the area, trying to spot Yang again, but to no avail. Her older sister was perfectly hidden in the crowd of students around her. She had no words to express how thankful she was for having met Pyrrha beforehand. The redhead was such a nice and considerate person. Ruby almost couldn't believe she accepted her as a friend already.

And without her, she would have never been able to smooth things over with Weiss, who was…fascinating to say the least. And then there was also Jaune, the goofy, but very sweet boy who had been unfortunate enough to get himself lost.

Maybe Cinder had been right after all…maybe being herself was exactly the way to go about this.

But…

'_How do I know if that's truly me?'_

She was more than relieved when Professor Goodwitch took over and told all of them they would sleep in the ballroom for the night, before dismissing the first year students.

Soon enough they all split up and mattresses were brought by the teaching stuff to accommodate them, making sure to divide the boys and the girls to give them each their own section.

Trailing after her group, she waved Jaune goodbye, whose unsure smile pulled on her heartstrings. She hated being alone as well. It wasn't a nice feeling.

Pyrrha, Weiss and Ruby made their way through the hall to search for three unoccupied beds, when a familiar voice reached the younger girl's ears, making her look up in search of its source.

"Yang!", she called out once she spotted her older sister chatting up a dark haired girl with a book in her hands, who appeared to be only partially interested in their conversation.

The blonde haired girl spun around, at first taken aback, but when she realized who had called her name, a wide grin spread over her face, as she excused herself to the girl she was talking to and went up to her.

Her eyes trailing over Pyrrha, settling on Weiss, seizing her up with keen interest.

"Hey Rubes, you got some new friends?

Who's the princess over there?"

'_Uh-oh…'_

Before Ruby was able to deescalate the situation, the heiress stepped forward, pointing her index finger at Yang with a glare that could only be described as deadly.

"Excuse me, who do you call a princess, you…you ruffian!"

Needless to say her sister was a bit more than caught off guard by Weiss' demeanor. Deciding to ignore her, she lowered her voice and leaned even closer to the younger girl.

"Aaanyway", she drawled, quickly searching for a new subject to talk about,

"how's your first day going, little sister?"

As much as Ruby loved Yang, she felt a wave of annoyance wash over her at that.

What did her sister think would happen to her after she had left so abruptly?

All alone with Pyrrha, someone they both hadn't even known before this very day.

A complete stranger of sorts.

But then again…this was as much a new experience to Yang as it was to her.

…didn't mean she hadn't a right to her feelings right now.

Blinking blankly at the blonde haired girl she scowled petulantly.

"You mean since you ditched me and I made a complete fool of myself?"

"Yikes.

Meltdown already?"

Her sister's rather nonchalant reaction threw her off, so she tried to explain it in a bit more detail this time. Twiddling her thumbs, she searched for a way to keep her hands occupied to distract her from her nerves, her voice rising slightly.

"No, I literally tripped over my own feet…and a bunch of trunks and there was a lot of yelling and I almost started a fight!"

"Are you being sarcastic?"

'_Goddammit Yang!'_

Sometimes she could be just as dense as their Mom and Cinder with picking up on other peoples' emotions.

Sighing softly Ruby shook her head, contemplating just how she could make herself understood.

"No! I-"

"You!"

The loud shriek made the younger girl jump back, maybe even in fear of being yelled at again by that penetrating voice she had come to know quite intensely this day.

But the heiress' pale, icy eyes weren't focused on her.

With two deliberate steps Weiss crossed the distance and faced Yang furiously, effectively inserting herself between the two sisters.

She crossed her arms sternly.

"Stop making light of this!

Are you even taking her words serious?"

'…_huh?'_

Was Weiss…actually somewhat trying to take her side here?

To defend her even?

The animosity radiating off of the Schnee didn't go unnoticed by her sister either.

"Wow…

Look, uh…"

She trailed off, searching for the right words, as she tried to sort through her obvious confusion, holding her hands up in a, what she hoped, placating way.

"It sounds like you and me got off the wrong foot!

Why don't we just start over and try to be friends, okay?"

Offering her hand, Yang settled on a rather charming smile, one she had so clearly copied from Cinder.

"Hi, I'm Yang. You seem really _chill. _

Wanna hang out?"

"Yeah, and we can paint our nails, and try on clothes, and talk about cute boys, like tall, blonde and scraggly over there!", came the prompt over excited answer, as Weiss pointed at Jaune, who had just been passing by in search of a free mattress on his side of the ballroom, her tone such a fake sugary sweet, that even Ruby had to snicker a little.

Her sister on the other hand was not impressed, her expression darkening, pulling her hand back with a dramatic sigh.

"A simple no would've been enough, ya know?"

"…No!"

Rolling her eyes, Yang turned towards Pyrrha, who had observed the events unfolding in front of her with keen interest, pointing at Weiss.

"Is she for real?"

"Hey, I heard that!"

"You were supposed to!"

"Sorry, could you keep it down?

People are trying to sleep."

The girl Yang had talked to before had put her book away, reprimanding them in her soft but firm voice, as she laid on her mattress unamused, motioning to the other students in the room, most of who had already gone to bed.

Yang huffed in annoyance.

"Great, see what you did?

We were getting along so well before you ruined it with your loud voice!"

"So this is _MY _fault?!", retorted Weiss hotly,

"I'm not the one who-"

"Shh! Guys, she's right!", the younger girl interrupted the fighting pair, putting a finger to her lips, shushing them effectively.

"People are trying to sleep!"

Picking up on the brewing unrest in their group again, Pyrrha yawned excessively, trying to put an emphasis on Ruby's words.

"Yes, it has been…quite a long day for all of us I imagine."

Giving the redhead a thankful smile, Ruby stretched her arms and yawned softly as well, continuing her search for a free mattress.

With the tension dispended, their group easily settled down, managing to secure a spot that allowed all three of them to stick together. Even Weiss wanted to tag along, taking the spot on Pyrrha's other side, leaving the redhead to sleep between them, something she was adamant she had nothing against at.

When the younger girl finally changed and sat down, Yang threw herself into her pillow happily.

"It's like a big slumber party!"

Not bothering to look up, Ruby rummaged through her back, having decided to write some letters. One to her friends at Signal and another she wanted to send home to ask her parents to send her a picture of Zwei.

She really did miss her dog.

So much in fact that she kinda stole his favorite pillow…and hoped he wouldn't notice.

"I don't think Mom and Dad would approve of all the boys though."

Yang's smirk widened, as she let her gaze wander over the ballroom again.

"I know I do", she positively purred, causing Ruby to snicker,

"What? I have eyes and there are plenty of good looking people here…girls included."

A soft chuckle escaped her once she interpreted where Yang was going with this and a certain picture popped up in her head.

"Please tell me you didn't use a pajama pickup line again."

"N-No!", shot her sister back hastily, averting her eyes almost mortified, mumbling the rest of her sentence into Ruby's pillow,

"I complimented her bow first."

At Ruby's raised eyebrows and disbelieving look she finally relented.

"…fine, but can we please keep this between us?

I don't really want Cinder to know-"

"Don't want me to know what exactly?"

'_Cinder!'_

Now this was a nice surprise indeed. Ruby had thought she wouldn't see her oldest sister until after the initiation exam, but here she was…and with Emerald as well.

Yang muttered a soft curse under her breath, before leaning back lazily, plastering a smug smile on her face, while firing back:

"That I'm going to take all your top spots, naturally."

"I sincerely doubt that", scoffed the dark haired girl with a roll of her eyes, when Emerald placed her hand above Cinder's, nudging her gently.

"Well you never know, people can be full of surprises."

Spotting the girl next to their sister, Yang brightened up even more, sitting up in a fluid motion, winking suggestively at her.

"Em!

Finally come' to your senses and switching that one out for a better candidate?

I'm still available."

With a soft groan, Cinder just pinched her left arm subconsciously, commenting almost to herself:

"What a shocker."

"Watch it!", Yang shot back defensively and Emerald decided in that moment to end their petty back and forth.

"I think I'm keeping her.

She has very ambitious plans after all.

One of them involving a flying dragon and a sunset if I remember correctly."

The grin she send the dark haired girl and the way it flustered her were enough to peak Yang's curiosity.

"Oh? Do tell."

Ruby couldn't help but smile at the mint haired former thief.

Since she had entered their lives and started dating her oldest sister, Cinder had been far more approachable. Not that she had been closed off before…but it had been hard to get past her walls. Sometimes she had even wondered if the dark haired girl even wanted to stay with them or if someone forced her.

In her opinion Emerald was the best thing that could have happened to her family.

Clearing her throat, Cinder tried to regain some of her composure, stemming one hand into her hip, her tone gentle, but chiding.

"You're impossible.

We just wanted to wish you the best for the initiation tomorrow…not that you need it."

Her amber eyes finding Ruby's, as she spoke with a conviction the younger girl wished she possessed as well.

"You will do just fine."

…but what if she didn't?

…and what if she did?

'_Why is there never a middle way?'_

Yang's voice ripped her out of her thoughts.

"I'm going to do more than _just fine, _just you watch!"

That sounded like a challenge if she ever heard one. Not that this was a rare occurrence. But normally Cinder would just disregard the blonde haired girl and be done with it. That she seemed to ponder over this was…unexpected to say the least.

"Alright, I'll be watching."

"Really?"

To Ruby's immense surprise, it was her who had voiced that question.

Having Cinder watch would be…actually really nice. She and Yang were the only ones after all who...didn't put any kind of expectations on her.

"You will?", Yang asked, the puzzlement in her voice almost palpable.

A pleased smirk spread over Cinder's features, as she regarded their dumbstruck expressions.

"Of course, but Yang", she turned away, scouting the people around her, halting her sentence for dramatic aesthetics,

"I expect it to be just as you promised.

Make it worth my time."

"You betcha!"

Without acknowledging her sister's last words, Cinder and Emerald made their way back through the ballroom, passing Pyrrha in the process, who was given a friendly smile and wave oddly enough.

Then again…it had been the dark haired girl who had first introduced them…

Maybe they were friends as well?

As if the redhead could read her thoughts forest green met silver.

With Yang now as hyped up as she could get and Weiss already fast asleep, Ruby realized just how tired she actually was.

Pyrrha's gaze softened, as she leaned nearer and squeezed her hand.

"She is right, you know?

You will do great tomorrow."

Ruby felt some of the tension leave her body at these words.

Maybe…with so many people believing in her it would work out in the end.

Lying down, she snuggled into her pillow, the smell of home finally lulling her to sleep.

xxxxxxxxxx

To say Ruby was nervous the next morning was an understatement. She had heard so much about the initiation exams from Cinder that she had more than a little respect for them.

Even though practical exams were where she could excel the most, the knowledge of instructors observing and grading their every move was enough to cause her stomach to twist and turn in protest. Yang though appeared to be mostly unbothered, yes practically vibrant today. Maybe it had to do with Cinder's promise. She wanted to do well as well, especially knowing her older sister would watch, but for Yang it was like a long awaited challenge.

Since their mothers brought Cinder home from a mission there was this…rivalry between them. Ruby suspected it must have also to do with the introduction of their Mom, Raven, into their lives, but she couldn't be too sure.

Nevertheless, Yang would give it her all today, so she would as well.

She just hoped the team she wound up in would be worth it.

The younger girl sighed, inspecting her provisional locker when she heard someone giggle loudly, turning her attention towards a, what she could only presume, couple that just passed them.

"Wonder what those two were so worked up about", she muttered, facing her locker once more, causing her older sister to look up, her eyes immediately spotting the spunky girl and the more reserved black haired boy, perking up considerably as she called after them:

"Nora! Ren!

Wait up!"

"Friends of yours?"

If Ruby was honest to herself she kind of dreaded the answer.

"Kinda, more importantly my possible teammates I met yesterday.

I've gotta catch up to them!"

"Oh…"

She couldn't stop her face from falling slightly.

Yes…just like she had suspected.

Yang's eyes softened a bit when she seemed to pick up on her little sister's souring mood, declaring amicably:

"Don't worry, Rubes, there is always a place for you in my team, promise."

'_That's not it!'_

But she didn't want to rain on the blonde's parade. Beacon was their dreams come true. She shouldn't expect her older sister to stick with her. She had her own goals to accomplish.

…but it still hurt somewhat.

The younger girl opened her mouth to…say something?

She didn't know.

But before she was even able to string a coherent sentence together Yang's impatience had won out, her eyes widening as she witnessed Ren and Nora leave the building.

"Okay gotta go.

Good luck to you out there.

Love ya."

All Ruby could do was watching her sprint off with mixed feelings.

"There she goes.

Seriously what kind of sister-"

Startled she turned around.

Weiss and Pyrrha appeared to have come over from their lockers both having rather curious expressions on their faces.

Holding up her hands, she stopped the heiress midsentence.

"No, don't worry about it. That's just how she is."

And she didn't mean it in a bad way. Yang and Cinder were amazing older siblings. If someone would dare to hurt or threaten her they would immediately eradicate them. They loved her and she loved them.

The sudden change from Signal to Beacon was just a bit overwhelming for her.

There was no way she could blame Yang for that.

Weiss for her part didn't seem convinced, but simply clicked her tongue in annoyance, turning her attention towards Pyrrha, who gave Ruby a kind, understanding look.

"So, Pyrrha have you given any thought to whose team you would like to be on?

I'm sure everyone must be eager to unite with such a strong, well known individual, such as yourself."

The redhead didn't appear too surprised by the heiress' words.

"Hmm…I'm not quite sure. I was planning on letting the chips fall where they may."

"Well, I was thinking maybe we could be on a team together."

Just what was these peoples' obsession with teams?

At least Pyrrha seemed as neutral and disinterested to them as Ruby.

A fact she was rather glad for.

Pyrrha hesitated, giving the younger girl a short questioning look, before winking at her.

"I don't see why not.

What do you say, Ruby, would you like the three of us to be a team?"

'…_wait…WHAT?'_

"YES!"

This was...absolutely awesome.

Was this a dream?

Pyrrha wanted to form a team with her?

And Weiss as well?

She could feel happiness bubbling inside her, drowning out the bitter taste of Yang's sudden absence.

"Great, so how about we-", the heiress began without batting an eye to Ruby's inclusion, when a certain blonde haired boy stepped between her and Pyrrha, leaning casually against a locker, cutting her off once more.

"You know what else is great?

Me, Jaune Arc, the cute boy you mentioned yesterday."

Startled Weiss almost jumped back, narrowing her eyes at Jaune, rolling her eyes.

"Ugh, you again?"

"Hey there, Jaune."

Ruby couldn't help but chuckle at the boy's over the top entrance, her and Pyrrha both giving him a short greeting, though the latter appeared to have vividly brightened up at the blonde's presence.

"Hello again."

He waved them off however, leaning even closer into Weiss personal space, as he took a few steps forward, nonplussed by her reaction.

"Yeah yeah, so Weiss, been hearin' rumors about teams!

I was thinking you and me would make a good one.

What do you say?"

The younger girl hadn't expected that something like this would rattle the heiress, but it appeared she had thought wrong with how spooked and positively taken aback she looked right now.

"Alright, that's a bit too close!

Pyrrha, a little help please!?"

Before Ruby could react, Miló sailed right past her head, pinning Jaune against the nearest wall, Weiss pinching the bridge of her nose as she walked outside, her head held high when she passed him.

Now…that had been excessive if she dared to say so herself.

Rushing over to the boy, Pyrrha and Ruby decided to _unspear_ him, as the redhead took her weapon back, giving him an apologetic smile.

"I'm sorry!"

"I don't understand…

My dad said all women look for is confidence.

Where did I go wrong?"

It wasn't clear if he was talking to them or to himself, but Pyrrha seemed to sympathize with him, patting him on the back encouragingly.

"I don't think it's a good idea to generalize women.

Try to be…more true to yourself."

_Just…be yourself._

There it was again.

That dreaded advice.

And yet no one had been able to tell her yet just who exactly she was.

With a small sigh, she helped the blonde haired boy up, her tone somber when they finally made their way outside to the meeting spot where the initiation was supposed to take place.

"Come on, Jaune. Let's go."

xxxxxxxxxx

Now this hadn't been the kind of test Ruby had expected. It was way too hard to keep track of her friends and possible teammates when she had to concentrate on landing correctly. The only sound that reached her ears, as she sailed through the air, seemed to be Jaune's faint shriek of surprise. It seemed his hesitance about landing strategies had a reason after all.

She hoped the instructors would not actually let him fall to his death. Yes they were here to learn how to fight and protect, but purposefully leaving them to die was rather extreme and…wrong in her opinion.

Bracing herself she grabbed her weapon and waited for the right moment to lightly hack it into a passing branch of a tree, spinning and looping her around, lowering her further to the ground. This kind of speed had always been her thing. It was so…freeing. The sharp wind ruffled her black reddish hair, as her feet connected to the ground, the momentum causing her to topple over, performing a summersault to gain her footing again, as she sped through the Emerald forest in search of her friends, tugging her weapon away. It would only hinder her and lower her speed.

'_Gotta find Pyrrha, gotta find Weiss, gotta find Pyrrha, gotta find Weiss!'_

Yes, that's what she had to do. She would worry about Jaune at a later time. It was probably nothing. This was Beacon after all. Everyone got either scouted or had transcripts in their favor. Jaune would be just fine.

Cutting to the left, she managed to spot a flash of white out of the corner of her eyes and she cried out, probably way too relieved.

"Weiss!"

Coming to a screeching halt a few meters before her, she managed to look up in time to observing Weiss' surprise morph into…gratefulness? when it finally sank in just who made eye contact with her and was now her partner for the next 4 years.

"Ruby!"; she called out with something akin to excitement, her voice mirroring some of the relief she herself felt upon seeing a familiar face. Maybe the heiress was actually really glad to be partnered with her.

"Thank god, I was worried I would get stuck with that Arc guy."

…or that…

'_Well, better than nothing.'_

Managing a sheepish grin, Ruby looked around somewhat at a loss.

"Alright", she offered after an awkward pause, folding her hands behind her head,

" so…what now, teammate?"

Weiss seemed taken aback by her question, but gave her a pleased smile, as she motioned for Ruby to step closer under the tree in front of them, before she mustered their surroundings. Ruby got that she probably wanted to make sure that no Grimm was in their immediate proximity. She would have done the same thing if the choice had been up to her.

Satisfied, Weiss turned back to the younger girl.

"Why don't we exchange some useful information about ourselves to see how we should proceed?"

Twirling the rapier in her hand, she let the small, color filled bottles right above the handle spin, as she presented it with a rather proud undertone.

"As you can see I use a multi action rapier, named Myrtenaster, supported by different types of Dust and my semblance are glyphs."

Lowering her weapon again, she tapped the sharp top against the ground, creating a bright, glowing circle on the forest floor, which funnily resembled a snowflake. Ruby had to stop herself from snickering loudly at that.

Snow Angel indeed.

"They allow me to create…a desired effect, so to speak."

'_Oooh!'_

That did spark some curiosity inside the younger girl, as she began to ponder how one could and would best utilize such an ability. Not that she wasn't already completely wowed by the lightshow Weiss had unwittingly caused.

"So, can you use your semblance as a supporter?", she asked, her eyes wide with childish glee, as she took in all these new information.

"Like, I dunno, assist from afar, rather than storming to the frontline?"

Trying to reinforce her point, Ruby flailed her arms around trying to mimic the movements she tried to describe with grand gestures.

"Could you slow down or freeze enemies, or enhance one of your teammates and make them faster for example?"

Weiss blinked almost owlishly at her, as she pondered over her questions.

"Yes…I suppose that would work. I haven't really done a lot of…team exercises before mind you."

She seemed…impressed for some reason, though the younger girl couldn't specify what about.

So she simply grinned, searching for her own weapon under her cloak.

"That's so awesome. You have such a cool semblance, Weiss!"

And she really meant that. Such a useful and fun ability to have.

Just like her Dad's…

Her Mom's…

Yang's…

Cinder's…

'_Ma's…'_

"Oh, before I forget", shaking her head to get rid of these uncomfortable thoughts she let Cresent Rose unfold its true form, striking a pose. She knew just how cool her weapon was.

"My weapon is a scythe, but it also transforms into a rifle. This is Cresent Rose.

I'm pretty good at fighting monsters in either close or distant combat, because my semblance…"

With a flick of her fingers Ruby dissolved into a bright red blur of rose petals, zooming past Weiss stopping on her other side, sheepishly scratching the back of her head.

"Is Speed."

Against all odds she had hoped to impress the heiress, but apparently only one thing of her demonstration had stood out.

"Rose?

Are you by any chance related to Summer Rose?"

'…_crap!'_

Her reply was rather hesitant to say the least.

"Yes, that's my Ma."

She could practically feel Weiss lighting up, the awe oh so clear in her voice, as she began to gush like one of these crazy fan girls Yang had once warned her about.

"That's incredible. No wonder you got in so early. Your mother is a true legend among huntsmen and huntresses."

No, no, no!

She got in because she earned it!

She fought a criminal.

She helped people.

She…

_You…have silver eyes._

Just like…

No! She refused to think any deeper on this.

She might not be cut out to be a team leader, but she knew she was a capable fighter.

She got where she was out of her own strength.

"…I guess?"

She desperately tried to mask the insecurity of her reply with the biggest grin she could forcefully muster, but maybe she wasn't as convincing as she had thought, because Weiss' gaze became troubled all of a sudden, as she waved the topic off, deeming it as irrelevant for now.

"On second thought…let's save this for later. Our first objective is reaching the ruins where we hopefully will meet up with Pyrrha again."

'_Huh?'_

Ruby didn't know what changed the other girl's mind, but she was immensely grateful for it. And she couldn't wait to get this practical test started. Slaying monsters was the fun part after all.

A real smile stretched over her face, as she grabbed her teammate's hand and tugged her forward with a loud cheer.

"Well what are we waiting for?

On to the ruins!"

* * *

**AN: Hello again =)**

**Yeah I know, it's a week late, but we were hit by a heat wave and I just**

**couldn't concentrate enough to write in that time.**

**But at least this chapter is a bit longer to maybe make up for this XD**

**Also, look at this amazing cover Austa drew for me! It's so amazing 3**

**Enjoy ^^**


End file.
